Pierson 1 History of the Church: SUMMARY, PART I Christian
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Pierson History of the Church: SUMMARY, PART I Christian historians interpret history from their own perspective, no matter their own particular Christian tradition or how objective their approach. The following summary of the first one thousand years of the church presents church history from an Orthodox perspective. It hits the high points, and attempts to give a view of the larger trends and movements. For details on particular persons or events, see the course outline. The two main backgrounds to the Christian Church are the Jewish and the Greco- Roman. Plenty of modern historical works have examined each of these backgrounds.1 An appreciation of these cultural traditions is essential to understanding the beginnings of the Church at all levels. When the evangelists Matthew and Luke provided genealogies toward the beginning of their gospels, they were connecting their stories to one that goes all the way back. The Jewish/Hebrew background provided early Christians with a God, a religious devotion, a set of scriptures, and a religious authority structure from which they drew many of their own concepts. The Christian Church began in the Roman Empire at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. The empire was the immediate context, but it was preceded in the eastern Mediterranean by centuries of Hellenistic cultural dominance. After the conquests of Alexander the Great (333-323 B.C.), the Middle East was dominated by rulers of Greek cultural heritage (referred to as “Hellenistic”). One of the cultural capitals of the Hellenistic Age would soon become the greatest city in the region—Alexandria. A huge lighthouse led ships into the harbor of Alexander’s city. Alexandria’s museum and library provided access to the fruits of Greek civilization (and other civilizations). These institutions were patronized by the kings of the Ptolemaic Dynasty that ruled Egypt after Alexander’s death. The heirs of Greek culture also founded Antioch, capital of the Seleucid Dynasty in Syria. Both cities later hosted large Christian populations, and their powerful churches would become rivals during theological controversies. Alexandria hosted the largest Jewish community anywhere. Greek-speaking Jews provided the basic text that would serve as the Old Testament scriptures of the Church— the Septuagint (LXX). The Septuagint was the Greek translation of the Jewish scriptures, which began in the 200s and extended into the first century B.C. Along with many other Jewish writings, these translations formed part of the adjustment of non-Greeks to the Greek language. Although it did not replace local languages, Greek became the common language of people in the eastern Mediterranean and would be used by the authors of the New Testament. The New Testament is the basic document for earliest church history, and it contains a book of history (Acts) that, in addition to the gospels, initiates the historical tradition within Christianity. There is no attempt here to cover the whole New Testament, which has received much scholarly inquiry in the nearly two thousand years since it appeared. Some important foundations for the church should be mentioned, including its organization and leadership. A specific group of leaders was chosen by Christ, according 1 See Everett Ferguson, Backgrounds of Early Christianity, Grand Rapids. MI: Eerdmans, 3rd ed. (2003). 1 Pierson to the gospels, to witness to the coming Kingdom of God. The “Twelve” (as they were called) were “ones sent” (apostolos) into the world on a mission to make disciples of all nations. The book of Acts continues the gospel account, focusing on the apostles’ ministry. The connection between the apostles and the “bishops” of the church is clear from the language used in Acts and other New Testament books. When Judas leaves the group of apostles through his betrayal of Christ, Peter calls for another to take his “bishoprick” (episkope) (Acts 1.20). The Greek words episkopos (meaning “overseer”) and episkope (meaning the position of the overseer) are the origin of the word “bishop” in English. The role of the bishop is described in the New Testament letters to Timothy and Titus. From early in the church’s history, the bishop was the leader of the local church assembly, and bishops met in councils to decide church-wide issues. The first council met in Jerusalem as described in Acts 15. Besides the bishops, other leaders of the church were the “priests” (from presbyteros, meaning “elder”). The priests appear in the New Testament alongside the bishops as ministers to the church. “Deacons” (from diakonos, meanings “server”) assisted bishops and priests in their duties. The earliest church fathers, such as Ignatius of Antioch (d. 115), noted the importance of bishops in maintaining order in the church. Other sources indicated that bishops were the leaders of the main congregations of Christians (in the larger cities), while priests represented bishops in the smaller cities and towns. Leading figures in the early church also included the “martyrs” (from martyros, meaning “witness”). The martyrs were those who died for their faith in Christ. Like the Old Testament figures described in the letter to the Hebrews (12.1), they witnessed to their faith through perseverance, and like the saints under the altar in John’s vision of heaven (Rev. 6.9-10), they petitioned God concerning events on earth. Emperor Nero (r.54-68) instigated the persecution in Rome in which Peter and Paul died. Polycarp of Smyrna (c.69-c.155) provides an example of a martyr whose memory was actively cultivated by the early church. The second and third centuries of the Christian era saw the church growing despite opponents and some official persecutions. Jews and pagans often found themselves in opposition to the new faith. Roman emperors responded to Christianity with everything from indifference to fierce opposition. True empire-wide persecution of Christians did not come until Emperor Decius (r.249-251). One of the most deceptive opponents of the early church was the Gnostic movement. This movement seems to defy definition and it was not well organized. It tried to merge with Orthodox Christianity, portraying Christ as a teacher of gnosis (meaning “knowledge”) concerning how to free oneself from material existence. The anti-material emphasis of the Gnostics was opposed by church fathers like Irenaeus of Lyons (d. c.200), a disciple of Polycarp, who described the difference between Christianity and Gnosticism and urged conformity to the teachings of the apostles and their successors (the bishops). 2 Pierson One theologian and church father not to be overlooked is Origen (c.185-254). A Christian from Alexandria, Origen suffered under the persecution of Decius but survived for a few years. Origen’s theology depended too heavily on certain Greek philosophical ideas, and Origenist doctrines like universal salvation and preexistence of souls would be condemned officially by the church hundreds of years later. Along with Justin Martyr, Origen was one of the church fathers who discussed the “Logos doctrine” (see John 1.1). Christ is the logos (often translated as “word”) of God, and became incarnate in Jesus (obvious from John’s gospel). Before the coming of Christ in the flesh, however, the logos of God was active throughout creation and in certain wise human beings. Some degree of divine knowledge was therefore available to god-fearing people before Christ, even if they were not directly inspired like the Hebrew prophets. The study of church history changes for the period after Emperor Constantine came to power (r.324-337) and made the empire officially pro-Christian. Historical documents for the church became much more common, making scholarship easier in one sense. But church politics grew more complicated as the church and the state formed an alliance. The process of “Christianization” of the empire was neither short nor smooth, and many pagans held onto power as long as they could. Heresies among powerful Romans caused turmoil in the church, but they also led to ecumenical (meaning “world- wide”) councils that defined the faith. Some of Constantine’s successors were Arians, who taught Christ was a created being. The first ecumenical council (Nicea I in 325) was called by Constantine, condemned Arius (an Alexandrian priest), and established the first part of the “Nicene Creed,” but the theological debate was just getting started. Athanasius of Alexandria (c.300-373) led the Orthodox opposition to Arianism before the second ecumenical council in 381 (Constantinople I). Athanasius authored several important theological treatises, including “On the Incarnation.” He also named the 27 books of the New Testament that are in today’s Bible, though the debate over the canon of scripture went on for some time. At the council of Constantinople I, the divine essence of all three persons of the Trinity was confirmed and the creed was completed. The council affirmed the trinitarian theology of the three “Cappadocian” church fathers Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and Gregory of Nazianzus. The fourth century saw the development of Christianity in two opposite directions—worldly power and monasticism. Constantine established a new, eastern capital at Byzantion (Constantinople) in 330. This would be the capital of the East Roman Empire for over 1000 years. Anthony of Egypt (c.250-356), considered the “Father of Monasticism,” provided the example for ascetic warriors who abandoned Constantine’s civilization and struggled with dark forces in the desert. As for church leaders, bishops of large and powerful cities held honorary positions of authority among the bishops, although any bishop’s vote in a council was considered equal. John Chrysostom (“golden-mouthed”) was an important bishop of Constantinople (398-407). Renowned as a preacher, John’s “On the Priesthood” became a classic work for the clergy, and his liturgical compositions established the most commonly used Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox Church.